Elsie Allen sat at a table piled chin-high with pictures of Gov. Rick Scott taped to rolls of toilet paper at the Bo Diddley Community Plaza.
"Get this guy out," she yelled to passers-by, waving the toilet paper in the air. "We have to vote, and we've got to get this guy out."
Allen was one of 10 people handing out information at tables at the Fight Back Florida/Gainesville Rocks the Vote rally Saturday afternoon.
The voting rally was organized to educate Gainesville residents on the importance of voting on a national, state and local level, said Jeremiah Tattersall, state organizer for Fight Back Florida and an organizer of the event.
Fight Back Florida is a statewide activist organization made up of students, young workers and union members who oppose Gov. Scott and who want to stand up for the rights of the working class.
Allen said college students in Gainesville do not care enough about local and state government elections.
"These elections are even more important than the presidential election," Allen said. "These people may someday be president."
Gainesville City Commission candidate James Ingle set up a tent and handed out information at the rally, and commission candidates Armando Grundy, Dejeon Cain and Yvonne Hinson-Rawls made appearances throughout the day.
As people ate food from The Jones Eastside and Karma Cream and listened to live music, the Alachua County Administration Building, located across the street from the plaza, kept its doors open for early voting.
The event began at noon and continued until 4 p.m. Within that time, 110 people voted at that election site, according to a voting machine inside the building.
"Voter turnout in Gainesville is just sad," Tattersall said.
He said he was happy with the event's attendance, but he hopes more people make it a priority to go out and vote this week.
Three local bands played during the rally. Kids and adults danced in the middle of the plaza to folk, punk and rock music.
Organizations present at the rally included UF's Students for a Democratic Society, the North Central Florida Central Labor Council and Graduate Assistants United. Speakers form each organization spoke throughout the day.
As the Beatles' "Revolution" played over the plaza's loudspeaker, Eric Brown sat at the SDS table and encouraged people to vote.
"We need to have more progressive candidates who represent the people in this city," said Brown, an 18-year-old political science freshman.
Students tend to not think of themselves as Gainesville residents, Brown said.
Because of that mentality, he said, they are not interested in local government.
"You don't like tuition hikes? You don't like parking regulations?" he said. "Then go vote and put people in there who can alleviate those problems."
Cassia Laham, a 22-year-old political science senior, came to the rally to vote early. As a student who is graduating in a few months, she said she hopes the job market in Gainesville improves.
"Get on a bus here and listen to any conversation. Every complaint is about people trying to make ends meet," Laham said. "We've got to vote, and we've got to change that."
Brian Krashpad, frontman of the local punk rock band Crash Pad, plays downtown at the Fight Back Florida Gainesville Rocks the Vote rally Saturday afternoon.
